Author: Andreas Klein – Shlomo Aloni (with Ra’anan Weiss – Lee R. DeHaven – Avinoam Myasnikov)
Published: Double Ugly Books in Co-operation with AirDOC Aircraft Documentations
ISBN 978-3-935687-81-2
Available from: Aviation Bookshop
Hard back, 160 pages profusely illustrated throughout, black and white and colour images, line drawings, full colour profiles, full colour cockpit images and a lot more…
‘Kurnass’ or ‘Sledge-Hammer’, however you want to say it, this book is about as good as it get!
Those of you lucky enough to visit the IPMS (UK) Scale ModelWorld will have had an opportunity to visit the Aviation Bookshop and find an actual Israeli fighter Ace – Amir Nachumi – IAF Chief of Operations and Training 1989 to 1992. He was recalling his exploits and signing copies of this superb new text. Not only this Volume No.1, but Volume No.2 as well.
Everything about this new text is quality, from the hardback covers to the art paper, colour imagery and content. Let’s take a closer look. Well there’s no doubt that the book has been written very much with the scale modeller in mind – it has it all: full colour images; profiles; cockpit coverage; walk-around; operational pictures; line drawings; individual aircraft histories – it simply goes on! In fact, just when you finish saying – Wow!, sure enough there’s another stunning set of images or coverage that will delight the reader – just take the weapons fit images and those for the cockpit – the extensive coverage is exactly what the modeller needs and will want.
The focus of this volume is the period 1969 – 1988 and the Phantom F-4E operations and service of the type. The 5 Chapters take you through The War of Attrition – ‘The Kammers’ Shark Mouthed Kurnass # 187; The Yom Kippur War – US Airlift to Israel, Operation Nickel Grass; Peace For Galilee – Kurnass Movie Star, Iron Eagle II; F-4 Yom Kippur War – Cockpit and Armament; scale drawings; camouflage schemes; cockpit layout – Early Production Block F-4E and various serial lists, kills and so on.
In summary
There really is nothing to criticise in this volume – especially from a scale modelling perspective, and, to be fair, that’s unusual. Right out of the top drawer… everything you will ever need to build an accurate Israeli F-4E Phantom II.
Highly recommended.
Israeli Phantoms – The ‘Kurnass’ in IDF/AF Service 1989 until Today Vol. 2
Authors: Andreas Klein – Shlomo Aloni (with Ra’anan Weiss – Lee R. DeHaven – Avinoam Myasnikov)
Published: Double Ugly Books in Co-operation with AirDOC Aircraft Documentations
ISBN 978-3-935687-81-2
Available from: Aviation Bookshop www.aviation-bookshop.com
Hard back, 160 pages profusely illustrated throughout, black and white and colour images, line drawings, full colour profiles, full colour cockpit images and a lot more…
(see also Volume No.1 above)
Can I recommend that you read the Volume No.1 review because much of that review is applicable here? This book has it all, just like Volume No.1. only this time there is more of a focus on the F-4E/S Tsalam Shablul. In addition, the RF-4E Kurnass Tsilum is given great depth in the excellent
Walkaround, as is the Kurnass 2000 with complete coverage of the cockpit and airframe.
There are so many full colour, quality images that this new release simply oozes quality from every direction. There are 12 chapters and 7 appendices. Squadron 69 ‘The Hammers’; 105 ‘The Scorpions’, 107 ‘The Knights of the Orange Tail’, 119 ‘The Bats’, 201 ‘The One’ and Manat Test and Evaluation Squadron are all covered in good depth with many colour images.
In summary
The review of Volume No.1 has more general review comments but suffice to say that rarely are books published that are as relevant, detailed, and of such high quality. If this is your area of interest, I can sum up what you should do – buy it!